I just completed an oil change on a '90 Camry and after I drained the oil pan I removed the oil filter and about a cup of oil spilled out. Is there a way to lessen the amount of oil that spills out next time I remove the filter?
The oil spilling out is actually a good thing; it means the anti-drainback valve in the filter is working well. Just use lots of rags as you're taking it off next time.
Wouldnt it mean the oposite, I never lost oil like that, if the anti drain back was working the oil would have been in the filter, not spilling out. I think its a bad filter with defective anti drainback since the objective is to keep oil in the filter
The oil backed out was from the center tube of the filter and into the engine. So I second that the anti-drainback valve is working. I use rags and loosen the filter a little repeatedly to let the oil soak into the rags. Yeah I know, stinking design.
I heard Nissan made a funnel attached to their V6s because of this. These are just poor designs that's all. The new 2.4L properly corrected this.
Wait a few minutes after you think that the pan has drained completely, before pulling the filter.
=== If you can let it drain over night, you'll remove more contaminants and the filter removal will leak zero oil. Otherwise, try letting it sit for 30 - 45 mins. after draining the pan and you should be fine.
No, there is oil in the system past the filter (overhead to the cams etc.). The anti-drainback valve in the filter prevents the oil in the lubrication system from draining back through the filter into the sump. When you remove the filter, you remove the valve and the oil drains out - onto your hand.
Ed
This won't help. I know some people who punch a hole in the filter before they remove it. This allows the oil to drain out in a directed manner. This is too much work for me. If getting oil on your hands is a problem, buy a box of cheap latex gloves and wear one when you are chaning the oil and clean up the mess with paper towels.
Ed
Not if the anti-drainback valve is working.
Only if the anti-drainback valve is defective.
I have had one car where this was not a problem - a Saturn Vue with the 4 cylinder Ecotech engine. It had a cartridge type filter mounted high on the side of the engine (accessed from above with minimal effort). You unscrewed the cap from the filter container and the filter was latched to the cap. The filter came out when you picked up the cap with minimal spillage (maybe a little dripping from the element). To install the filter, you snap the new filter onto the cap and screw the cap back in place. This worked great. I think the 3.5L Camry V-6 uses a similar system, but I have not seen one.
Ed
=== Have been doing it this way for years. Never a problem.
-- The anti drainback valve prevents oil from leaving the filter, it does not cause it to leak out more.
"Daniel" wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@22g2000hsm.googlegroups.com...
No, the anti-drain back valve keeps oil from draining back from the oil system through oil filter into the sump. It acts as a check valve for the entire oiling system - i.e. it is a check valve for the oil system, including the filter. When you remove the filter, there is oil in the filter, but there is also oil in the rest of the oil system. If the filter hangs straight down, the oil in the filter stays in the filter, but the oil in the rest of the system beyond the filter can still drain out through the filter mounting base since you have removed the filter that includes the anti-drain back valve (i.e., the check valve). If the filter is upside down, horizontal, or at some angle in between, when you remove the filter, oil spills from the filter and drains back from the rest of the system. Punching a hole in the filter allows the oil to drain from the filter and the rest of the system beyond the filter. For some cars, the anti-drain back valve is not significant. The amount of oil in the system beyond the filter is trivial. For other engines, the anti-drain back valve is very important. Engines such as the Ford modular V-8s use oil pressure to tension the cam chains and pump up the valve lifters. A lousy anti-drain back vale allows the oil to drain out of these components over night and you may get a lot of noise the next morning when you start the engine. For Toyota engines with timing belts and mechanical lifters there is little oil left in the system beyond the filter, and it may drain out past the bearings over a period of time. The amount of oil that spills when you remove the filter is a function of several things - filter location in the system (high up on the engine means less leakage, lower means more); filter orientation, amount of oil in the system beyond the filter, configuration of the oil system passages, viscosity of the oil, temperature of the oil, time since the engine was shut off, etc. I've changed the oil in my SO's RAV4 after it has been sitting overnight and I still get a rain of oil from the oil base (the filter is vertical with the base at the top). The oil is not coming from the filter, it is coming from the rest of the system. My Fathers old Ranger (OHC) leaked very little oil when you removed the filter. It also had a vertical filter with the base up. My old 4.9L Ford F150 leaked almost no oil if you let it sit overnight and it had a horizontal filter. I don't think you can generalize the situation to say that waiting will prevent oil from running out when you remove the filter. For some cars and filters it may, for others it definitely won't. As a car ages and the bearing clearances open up, waiting might become more effective. However, if your anti-drain back valve is working, there should be some oil trapped in the system above the filter (unless the filter is at the top of the engine). This oil will drain out when you remove the filter. If it doesn't, the oil drained out elsewhere - either past the anti-drain back valve or past the main bearings. To me, having oil flow out around the filter when you remove it is a good sign. It means your engine is retaining oil in the areas where it is needed when you start the car up in the morning.
Ed
I've seen what both Ed and Daniel talked about. So you're both correct.
Some (particularly the Toyota I4) tend to loose oil from the filters after sitting a while. I've not seen this with any other make.
So letting the car sit may not help in some engines but will in others. However, I too think this indicates a flaw in the affected vehicles. The Camry I4 has a lot of these cases, so the problem may be the lubrication system design.
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